


A Catalyst for Change

by TheRev28



Category: Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Fluff, Love Confessions, very very minor self-doubt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:40:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26651548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRev28/pseuds/TheRev28
Summary: Leading up to the Love Live! qualifiers, Dia finds herself doubting her ability to center a song. Thankfully,  Yō comes along to offer a distraction.
Relationships: Kurosawa Dia/Watanabe You
Comments: 2
Kudos: 33





	A Catalyst for Change

**Author's Note:**

> Takes place during season 2, between episodes 2 and 3.

Dia sat at her desk in the student council office, trying her best to make progress on the mountains of backlogged paperwork. It had only gotten worse after the school open house got pushed back a week. That on its own had added at least a day to the backlog, simply due to all the forms that needed revising and resubmitting. It also hadn’t helped her mental state that the delay put the open house on the same date as the Love Live! qualifiers.

With a sigh and one last signature, Dia sat back in her chair, closed her eyes, and rubbed her temples. Even though they had written a new song and agreed to split the group to play at both the qualifiers  _ and _ the open house, Dia still had some reservations. Not the least of which was the fact that she had been chosen to be the center for the new song. Two years ago, the thought of centering a song in the Love Live! qualifiers would have been a dream come true. Finally! She could be like μ’s and shine on a stage of her own with her friends!

A lot can happen in two years, though. 

Their failure in Tokyo—despite not actually being due to lack of talent—was a tough blow. Even though some of the confidence had come back after their performance of  _ MIRAI TICKET _ , the thought of being a  _ center _ ….

A knock at the door brought Dia back to the present, and she opened her eyes. Yō had her head poking through the doorway, wearing her signature radiant smile. Dia couldn't help but smile back a little. It was difficult to remain negative in the face of Yō’s unbridled positivity.

“Hey, Dia-san, are you free right now?” Yō asked.

Dia took a look at the pile of papers still stacked in neat piles and took a breath to respond with a “no.” The word died in her throat, though, and she let the breath out. Maybe it wouldn’t do any good to continue sitting here alone. Maybe she should go along with whatever Yō needed. She took a few more before finally responding.

“Yes, I was just about to take a small break,” she said. She looked back at Yō, and that smile still hadn't left the other girl’s face. It made her own smile briefly grow. “Did you need me for something, Yō-san?”

“Yeah! I think I’ve finished your outfit for  _ My Mai Tonight _ , and I wanted you to try it on!”

Dia raised an eyebrow. “Really? You’ve been uncharacteristically tight-lipped about the outfits for this song. Even Ruby doesn’t know anything about them.”

Yō rubbed the back of her neck and let out an embarrassed little chuckle. “What can I say, I wanted them to be a surprise for everyone,” she said. “I had really good inspiration, and I wanted to go full steam ahead on it!” She capped the statement off with her signature salute, and Dia couldn’t help but laugh a little. Yō really was like a shining light sometimes. 

“Then I eagerly await getting to see it,” Dia said, standing from her desk.

The two walked to the club room in a sort of comfortable silence. Yō had a bounce in her step, and her clear excitement was contagious. She had never been so secretive about an outfit before, and it had caused no end of speculation from the others—especially Chika. Every attempt to get Yō to spill the details had been met with a smug “nuh uh.” 

Yō opened the door to the club room. With a flourishing gesture and a little “ta-da,” she drew Dia’s eyes to the outfit.

Dia stopped dead in her tracks.

The outfit was gorgeous.

Yō had clearly drawn inspiration from a traditional Japanese yukata, but she had put her own modern spin on it—while also making it possible to dance in. There was a wonderful asymmetry about it, between the robe itself and the shorts underneath. And the pattern on the robe…. The sakura design was a wonderful offset to the darker base color, and the obi that tied it together was simple, yet tasteful. 

“Yō-san… this is stunning,” Dia said after a few moments.

This elicited another embarrassed chuckle from the other girl. “Oh, c’mon, Dia-san, you don’t have to flatter me,” Yō said.

“On the contrary. I think this may be your best work yet. May I ask what inspired it?”

“Oh! Well, the song does have that really traditional vibe in the beginning, and I just took that and ran with it. I also, um….” Yō trailed off, so Dia finally took her eyes off the outfit to look over at the second year. She seemed to be looking at anything besides Dia, and her hands were fidgeting with the hem of her school uniform. 

“You also…?” Dia prompted, surprised at the sudden hesitance in Yō’s demeanor.

“I also… maybe… was thinking about you a lot while designing it.”

Dia’s eyes widened. “R-really? I cannot imagine I could inspire such a stunning design,” she muttered. Her hand shoots up to cover her mouth; she hadn’t meant to say that last part.

Yō finally looked right at Dia, and she wore an expression of disbelief.

“Dia-san, what are you talking about?” Yō asked, sounding as incredulous as she looked. “You’re like, the poster child for classic Japanese beauty! I can’t  _ not _ put you in a yukata inspired outfit for a song you’re centering!”

The song she’s centering.

Dia looked down and away, bringing a hand under her chin to clutch her shirt. The insidious thoughts came back. 

“I am unsure if I am worthy of centering such an important song,” Dia whispered, unable to keep the thoughts inside anymore. 

Footsteps echoed loudly in the small clubroom, and Dia felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Yō standing right in front of her. Yō wore a soft smile on her face.

“You deserve to shine, too, Dia,” Yō said. “And I want to help you shine as bright as you can.”

Dia’s face erupted into a deep blush. She had never heard such… tenderness in Yō’s voice before. Coupled with the unexpected close proximity and physical touch, Dia’s brain briefly shut off.

“I-I should really try this on now,” Dia said in a rush, hurrying past Yō to grab the outfit. Objective in hand, she rushed just as quickly out the door and towards a bathroom to change in.

Once safely alone, Dia took a few deep breaths, trying to calm her frantic heart. What on earth just  _ happened _ ? Had she really been so open with her worries? Had Yō really said that? Had she really  _ meant _ that?

After a few minutes, her heart had calmed down, and her thoughts along with it. Whatever had just happened could be dealt with later. For now, Dia had to try on this gorgeous outfit. It was surprisingly easy to put on, considering its inspiration, and as typical for Yō’s outfits, it fit perfectly. The range of motion it allowed was also exemplary; the dance moves Kanan had come up with should be no concern.

She emerged from the bathroom and steeled her expression. Upon re-entering the club room, Yō’s eyes lit up, and her whole expression brightened. 

“Dia-san, it looks perfect on you!” Yō said, clapping her hands in excitement. “Oh, this is everything I had hoped it’d be. Does it fit well? Easy to move in? Any part too tight or too loose?”

“I assure you, the fit is perfect as always, Yō-san,” Dia said, smiling at Yō’s excitement. It was impossible to keep a straight face in light of such enthusiasm. “I don’t know how you do it.”

“Lots of mistakes, and lots of trying again. Now come here and sit down, I have a few ideas for your hair, and I want your opinion.”

Dia followed Yō’s lead and sat down in a chair with a mirror in front of it. Yō began to play with Dia’s hair as she spoke.

“Ok, so we could always leave it as-is; your normal hairstyle is traditional enough that it works with the theme,” Yō said, simply combing her fingers through Dia’s hair. “Personally, though, if you’re gonna be the center, I think it should pop more, don’t you?”

“Y-yes, I would agree with that,” Dia said, already starting to feel a little overwhelmed at the sensation of Yō playing with her hair. 

“Right? So I was thinking, what if we did something like this?” Yō gathered a portion of Dia’s hair up into a large bun at the back of her head, letting the rest fall as it normally would. “And we could keep it in place with some pretty ornaments.”

Unbeknownst to Yō, Dia had closed her eyes part way through. The sensation was so pleasant, and it reminded her of a simpler time when she was younger. And truthfully, it felt good to be pampered like this. Though part of her still couldn’t believe Yō had gone to such great lengths just for her. Even if these were the Love Live! qualifiers, the level of… care and detail put into not only the outfit, but also her hair, felt… excessive. 

“Yō-san… I’ve never seen you go to such great lengths for a single member’s outfit,” Dia said, still relishing in the feeling of Yō’s hands in her hair. But she had to ask this. “Why do so for me?”

Yō’s hands briefly stopped moving, but they continued soon enough. This time, though, Dia felt a… tenderness that wasn’t there before. Yō didn’t say anything for a few minutes, seemingly content to continue playing with Dia’s hair. Just before Dia opened her eyes again, Yō answered.

“I wanted to put all my feelings into this outfit for you,” she whispered. Dia thought her heart might stop. “I wanted this to be a confession of love.”

Dia’s eyes snapped open, and she looked at Yō’s face through the mirror. Greeting her was an expression filled with a quiet care, and she quickly turned around to see it head on.

“Yō-san—” 

Yō immediately pressed a finger to Dia’s lips, and Dia’s eyes widened even more.

“Just Yō,” she said. “Please?” She took her finger away.

“Yō,” Dia breathed out.

The breath hung between them, filling the room with a silent tension. Dia noticed Yō’s eyes constantly glancing down at her lips, and Dia found that her own eyes were doing the same. She leaned forward just enough to press her forehead against Yō’s.

“I accept,” Dia said.

Yō’s puzzled expression forced her to elaborate.

“I accept your confession. And I return it in kind.”

With that, Dia closed the short distance between their lips. She had always imagined her first kiss would be filled with a sort of fiery passion, but this one was filled with a quiet compassion. The kiss broke sooner than Dia would have liked, but she recognized that she had been bold in her actions; she didn’t want to assume too much too quickly.

Watching Yō’s eyes flutter open was possibly the cutest thing Dia had ever seen, and it brought a smile to her face. Yō quickly matched it, once again bringing their foreheads together. 

“It looks like I’m not the only one who likes to go full speed ahead,” Yō said, her voice slightly teasing. That earned a blush from Dia, but the smile remained the same.

“Yousoro,” Dia said, leaning in for another kiss.

Maybe, just maybe, the qualifiers would turn out for the best.

**Author's Note:**

> This was my first ever attempt at Love Live! fanfic - either SIP or Sunshine. I've become an unexpected fan of DiaYou, and after consuming basically every fic that focuses on it, I realized if I wanted more, I'd have to make my own. So I made my own. I hope y'all enjoyed! Yousoro!


End file.
